Anthony Cacace got his last shot at glory at the age of 35 in a recent bout with Joe Cordina. The fighter from Belfast did not disappoint as he put up a sensational performance against the Welsh champ during the Oleksandr Usyk vs. Tyson Fury undercard. The stakes were high because the IBF and the IBO featherweight straps were the prizes. Cacace left no crumbs as he gave shot after shot in attack and the referee raised his hand as the winner. 

He caused one of the biggest upsets of the year with the crowd cheering and not only were the fans excited, but this controversial fight also got a verdict from Conor McGregor, who also hails from Ireland like Cacace. 

Anthony Cacace gets a shoutout from Conor McGregor

Impressed with Cacace’s conduct and spectacular win in the bout despite being the underdog, Conor McGregor took to his official Instagram handle to give the boxer a massive shout-out. The UFC champion shared an Instagram story where he wrote, “What a performance! @anto_cacace.” The fight was intense for Anthony Cacace as he emerged victorious despite not possessing the one-punch power like Cordina. 

Meanwhile, the camaraderie between the two Ireland natives is not new as they were spotted sharing the same stage once. ‘The Apache’ met the former two-belt UFC champion at his Proper Twelve launch party in 2023. Both were photographed together, with McGregor happily wrapping his arms over Cacace’s shoulder while wearing an emerald green shirt and the latter was donning his IBO belt.

Meanwhile, the fight between Anthony Cacace and Joe Cordina did not end without controversy. After the fight, Cacace declared that he had hurt Cordina with every single shot and also dismissed complaints from Cordina about a hit and said it was “nothing dirty”. However, the rumored breach of rules got the fans and some veterans talking. 

Was there a breach of rules?

Cacace had taken the help of jabs and put a full stop to the fight to secure the score for the first round. He executed piercing shots against Cordina, but the opponent fought back with all his might in the second round while becoming the attacker rather than the defender. The tables turned again in the third round, where the Ireland native had his opponent under his tight grip and gave him a body shot along with jabs.

However, when the referee tried to separate the two, Cacace gave a clean hit. Now this is where the breach happened because when the referee intervenes or there is a break, you cannot hit your opponent as per the rules. The momentum shifted quickly after that and the 35-year-old finally scored a win in the eighth round. However, the last round also saw a controversial moment as the referee tried to stop the fight when Cordina was still in motion with his guard up.

Even though the fight was marred by controversies, Cacace won the fight. What do you think about the bout? Drop your views in the comments.